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Top 5 of each decade

Postby Witz78

I was arguing this with a mate earlier, and what you would think would be a simple debate suddenly became really difficult to do.

The debate centered around a TOP 5 for each decade of the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s.

This was the list i compiled.

1970s.
1- REARDON
2- SPENCER
3- A.HIGGINS
4- TAYLOR
5 - CHARLTON

1980S.
1-DAVIS
2-THORBURN
3-WHITE
4-GRIFFITHS
5- A.HIGGINS

1990S.
1- HENDRY
2-WHITE
3-PARROT
4-DOHERTY
5-J.HIGGINS

2000S.
1-RONNIE
2-WILLIAMS
3- J.HIGGINS
4- EBDON
5- STEVENS

Obviously a lot of players careers or peaks overlap decades so its hard to define where, if anywhere they should fit in, and also there can seem to be glaring ommisions upon first inspection, but once you think of the decade as a whole it suddenly becomes clearer.

What would your top 5s of the 4 decades be?

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Roland

Which Taylor in the 70s?

Who is Parrot?

I'd go:

70s
1 - Reardon
2 - Spencer
3 - Higgins
4 - Charlton
5 - Thorburn

80s
1 - Davis
2 - Thorburn
3 - Higgins
4 - Griffiths
5 - White

90s
1 - Hendry
2 - White
3 - Parrott
4 - Doherty
5 - Davis

00s
1 - Higgins
2 - O'Sullivan
3 - Williams
4 - Hendry
5 - Ding

but it's all opinion

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Roland

If you go from 75-85, 85-95, 95-05 and 05-now it would look completely different.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Casey

90s
1 - Hendry
2 - White
3 - Parrott
4 - O'Sullivan
5. Davis

00s
1 - Higgins
2 - O'Sullivan
3 - Williams
4 - Ding
5 - Hendry

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Witz78

for me it has to be Ronnie in the 2000s

more world titles than anyone else in that decade plus he was pretty consistent throughout the decade wheras MJW was hot at the start but average the rest, so vice versa was Higgins.

I find it hard to see Hendry included in the 2000s, he didnt win a Major after the Millenium and Ebdon beat him in WC and UK finals in the 2000s so surely he has to get the nod ahead of Hendry.

5th place man in 2000s a tough one, could argue case for Hunter, Robbo, Ding, Stevens.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Snooker Overdrive

I agree with Witz.

There can be no second opinion who was the best of the 00s.

World titles: Higgins 2 < Ronnie 3
UK titles: Higgins 1 < Ronnie 2
Masters titles: Higgins 1 < Ronnie 3
Seasons world no.1: Higgins 2 < Ronnie 4
Ranking titles won: Higgins 8 < Ronnie 15

Ronnie was superior to Higgins in every relevant statistic in the 00s and that by a long shot

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Pink Ball

'70s
1. Reardon
2. Spencer
3. Alex Higgins
4. Mountjoy
5. Charlton

'80s
1. Davis
2. Thorburn
3. Alex Higgins
4. Griffiths
5. White

'90s
1. Hendry
2. John Higgins
3. O'Sullivan
4. White
5. Parrott

'00s
1. O'Sullivan
2. Higgins
3. Williams
4. Hendry
5. Ebdon

'10s thus far
1. Selby
2. O'Sullivan
3. Higgins
4. Ding
5. Robertson

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Cloud Strife

I remember this thread. I found it amazing at the time that some were putting Higgins ahead of Ronnie for the 2000s even though all the stats were in Ronnie's favour.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Pink Ball

Cloud Strife wrote:I remember this thread. I found it amazing at the time that some were putting Higgins ahead of Ronnie for the 2000s even though all the stats were in Ronnie's favour.

It was 2011, the year of the hipster rejoicing at the end of O'Sullivan's career, forever destined to be in John Higgins' shadow. bucking lunacy.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Andre147

Pink Ball wrote:
Cloud Strife wrote:I remember this thread. I found it amazing at the time that some were putting Higgins ahead of Ronnie for the 2000s even though all the stats were in Ronnie's favour.

It was 2011, the year of the hipster rejoicing at the end of O'Sullivan's career, forever destined to be in John Higgins' shadow. bucking lunacy.


Exactly, by then all the haters saying he was finished, dead and buried.

Well his renainsance began in the 2012 German Masters and since then he hasn't looked back.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby vodkadiet

Bingham is this right up there for this decade.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Pink Ball

Snooker Overdrive wrote:I agree with Witz.

There can be no second opinion who was the best of the 00s.

World titles: Higgins 2 < Ronnie 3
UK titles: Higgins 1 < Ronnie 2
Masters titles: Higgins 1 < Ronnie 3
Seasons world no.1: Higgins 2 < Ronnie 4
Ranking titles won: Higgins 8 < Ronnie 15

Ronnie was superior to Higgins in every relevant statistic in the 00s and that by a long shot

It was daftness by two posters above to say Higgins was the greatest player of the '00s. Same age, up against the exact same opposition, O'Sullivan got the better of him in every measure of success.

Re: Top 5 of each decade

Postby Truth

I mostly agree with Pink's list, but with the following amendments...

White shouldn't be in the top 5 in the 90s. 5 ranked wins in the early 90s, but nothing after 92, and he even dropped out of the top 16 in 97. Davis achieved more than White in the 90s, and he doesn't deserve to be in the top 5 either.

90s
Hendry
Higgins
Parrott
O'Sullivan
Williams

I don't think Hendry deserves a place for the 00s. He was consistent, but didn't win much. A case could be made for adding Hunter, Murphy or Ding in Hendry's place.

Robertson should place higher than Ding in the 10s (and Higgins if he doesn't win today), as he won 4 Triple Crowns in this period and had a more convincing spell as #1.